Greeley Tribune: Fiscal cliff deal falls short

Journal-Advocate staff

Posted:
01/07/2013 11:46:45 AM MST

It's somewhat surprising to see Republican Rep. Cory Gardner and Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet on the same side of a high-profile and divisive issue, but that's exactly what happened as Congress voted on legislation to avert the combination of tax increases and spending cuts known as the fiscal cliff.

The Colorado lawmakers both voted against the deal congressional leaders hammered out to avoid an economic crisis.

The measure, which passed despite the objections of some from both parties, raises taxes on the wealthiest Americans, while deferring a decision about spending cuts and putting in place stop-gap measures on other key issues.

Of course, we're happy leaders managed to avert the fiscal cliff, which many economists say would have put the nation into another recession, and we're glad many Republicans agreed to compromise on tax increases, but the deal itself falls woefully short.

It fails to meaningfully address real concerns for many area residents and passes the buck on the kind of comprehensive policy the nation needs to address its growing national debt.

"I think Washington has once again taken the easy way out," Bennet told The Denver Post after the vote. "But at some point, we're going to have to face this or we're not going to (be able) to make investments we need to make for the next generation."

We agree. Although both parties often fail to recognize it, the U.

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S. does need to address its systemic budget deficits. That means increasing revenue and cutting spending.

The fiscal cliff offered an opportunity for leaders from both parties to reach just such a compromise, but they shrunk from the task, setting up another looming cliffhanger in the coming months in the form of a vote to raise the debt ceiling.

At the beginning of this fiscal cliff process, it looked as though die-hard Republicans, who refused to raise taxes under any circumstances, would be the stumbling block. Some of those Republicans, however, found a way to compromise. Now, Democrats need to step up and compromise on spending cuts.

Gardner has never been willing to compromise on taxes, and that's a shame, but he did make a good point when he explained why he voted against the deal.

"This country has $16 trillion in debt," he said. "The problem we have is spending, but here was a bill that actually gave the government more money to spend, with zero deficit or spending reform."

Not only did the fiscal cliff deal fail to deliver on the budget issues, it also failed locals.

For example, the measure only extends the wind energy production tax credit for a year, which Vestas Wind Systems said in a statement Wednesday isn't enough to change its predictions for the coming year. Vestas, which has three manufacturing plants in Weld County, spent much of the past year laying off employees as Congress dithered.

The deal also extends the farm bill through the end of the fiscal year in September. This extension, like the production tax credit, gives producers a measure of certainty, but doesn't really address their concerns. Farm bills normally are passed on a five-year cycle, and this extension leaves in place a number of out-dated provisions from the 2008 bill.

Of course proponents of the deal, and its components, contend it will buy time for Congress to reach serious solutions.

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